When the tour schedule was released all it took was a few minutes looking at my rota and a few words to Jane (who was very understanding) and 6 nights and over 1500 miles were planned.

Dingwalls was the first gig and I wasn't looking forward to the trip to London. Anyone other than Mr. McNabb and I would have cried off. Getting there early I managed to see Mokka who guaranteed I got in (bless) as I had left it till the last minute to decide on this one. The new album was purchased from Les and would be played on the way home as I struggled to get out of London for over an hour (totally lost). Listening to Ian's music live again after such a long break was sweet although this may have been due to the man in the toilets handing out lollies to anyone who washed their hands after doing the business. The Dingwalls crowd was smaller than expected...possibly 250-300, but those that had made the effort were rewarded with sets of passion and humour as always. "The Man Who Can Make a Woman Laugh" was my highlight of the first set as it brings back fond memories of my first McNabb tour as well as being a well observed piece of writing. Roy Corkill on Bass, Mokka on guitar and new addition to the family, Mathew Priest, from Dodgy were introduced to us as the band that would help Ian perform some serious guitar abuse in the second set. Matt Priest brought some fine backing vocals to the band as well as some great drumming. I was to find out from him the next night that they only practiced for two hours together for the tour as Ian doesn't like to practice!

The following night was to be a night of luxury, as I had booked Jane and myself into a posh hotel for the night. The Stables had changed since my last visit and was now a very nice seated theatre with good views from all sides. The sound was terrific and acoustics excellent. Ian urged the crowd to get up, and the usual gang of nutters (myself and Jane included) were to be found bouncing around for most of the set once the four brave nutters had started us off. Ian seemed to enjoy this gig more than the previous night. I was glad to see "Rockin' For Jesus" dropped from the set as I have never been a fan and thought that the previous nights acoustic version had been ill informed, but that's just my opinion.

Hopefully tapes of the show will surface, as I can't remember too much about the set list as I wasn't driving for a change! After the show, I met Matt Priest in the toilet and asked himn to say hello to Jane who used to be a big Dodgy fan. We found out that he was stopping at our hotel and we ended up, along with Wozy and partner, getting pissed till four in the morning with him! Matt turned out to be a very funny and friendly guy and enjoyed a few too many with us, letting a few rock secrets slip that I will take to my grave! Two nights into the tour and my favourites were already "German Soldiers Helmet" and "Prepared to Dream."

The Fleece and Firkin in Bristol was number three gig in four days, my car could take it but could my ears? The venue is a bit of a shithole, but the sound was good if not a bit too loud at times. Watching the soundcheck was amusing and it struck me that the band have to work harder than I thought at getting the sound right before the gig. I was glad to see Matt had made it to Bristol after the heavy session on Friday night. Ian was in fine form taking the piss out of the local yokels and at one stage talked for a few minutes with one particular farmer about tractors.

Brighton was a local gig for me—only 40 miles. The turnout was very poor, about 120 at the most. According to Ian, Brighton has never been very supportive. At one stage Ian got the girls singing, then the men then asked the homosexual element to be heard...it went deadly silent....until everyone burst out laughing. The sound at this gig was TOO loud for my poor ears and I had to keep moving out of the photo pit to give the old ears a break. The band seemed to get louder and louder in order to get a response from the apathetic gathering. Speaking with Ian before the show, he wasn't expecting much, and I was surprised at how much effort he put into entertaing the crowd. The end of the show found him smashing his guitar into his mike stand, and on this occasion—I could be wrong—it seemed like he was doing it out of boredom rather than an act of rock 'n' roll rage.

Gerry

3 November 2002 with minor editing 9 Nov.
This review Copyright © 2002, Gerry. All rights reserved. Reproduced with permission.